Huskies Thump Leopards to Open Candle Era

Saturday, September 5

East Hartford, CT

12:00 PM

University of Connecticut

1-0 , 0-0

Lafayette

0-1 , 0-0

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Lafayette	0	0	0	7	7
UConn	21	14	14	7	56

NCAA DI Football - 2026 - Lafayette at UConn, Rentschler Field, East Hartford, Connecticut.

Photo by: Clarus Multimedia Group

9/5/2026 5:10:00 PM | Football

Box Score

EAST HARTFORD, CT — The UConn Huskies opened the 2026 season with a dominant 56-7 win over Lafayette in front of 31,831 on Saturday at Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field. The Huskies controlled the game offensively, setting a new school record with 671 total yards, earning head coach Jason Candle his first win at UConn.

The Huskies got off to a fast start, scoring three touchdowns in the first quarter. UConn moved 75 yards on their first possession, with starting quarterback Kalieb Osborne hitting Javon Brown for 29 yards to cross midfield before finding Brown again for a 24-yard touchdown at 12:50, and Jack O'Connor's extra point made it 7-0. After Lafayette's first drive ended with a punt, Osborne broke a 30-yard run and later converted on fourth-and-five from the Lafayette 18 with an 18-yard touchdown pass to Kenji Christian, extending the Huskies' lead to 14-0. Later in the quarter, Osborne added to UConn's lead with his legs, rushing in a 9-yard score at 1:43 to make it 21-0.

The Huskies first scoring drive of the second quarter overcame an early holding penalty, leading to a Cyncir Bowers 16-yard touchdown run at 9:14, pushing the lead to 28-0. With just under three minutes remaining in the first half, Christian ran in his second touchdown of the game from 25 yards out, adding to UConn's lead, 35-0 lead.

UConn opened the second half with an 80-yard, seven play drive capped by another rushing touchdown from Osborn at 10:37 to make it 42-0.

UConn turned to its reserves late in the third quarter and Trey Cornist broke a 55-yard touchdown run with 2:36 remaining to give the Huskies a 49-0 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

In the fourth quarter, quarterback Tucker McDonald hit Raymond Liggins III for a 60-yard touchdown at 3:07, making it 56-0. Lafayette scored its lone touchdown of the game with 44 seconds left, bringing the final scoreline to 56-7.

Osborne completed 19 of 26 passes for 265 yards and two touchdowns and added 90 rushing yards and two scores on eight carries. Brown caught six passes for 92 yards and a touchdown. Christian rushed for 46 yards and a touchdown on seven carries and added two catches for 22 yards and another score.

Daniel Lipovski led Lafayette's offense, completing 16 of 33 passes for 102 yards Beckham Dee had eight tackles and intercepted a pass. Darrick LeBeouf added four tackles and also had an interception.

With the win, the Huskies improve to 1-0 overall. UConn returns to action on Saturday, September 12 as the Huskies welcome the Maryland Terrapins to Rentschler Field. Kickoff is set for 3:30pm on CBS Sports Network.